You are looking at the latest from boutique automaker Caterham, the Caterham Seven Sprint. As you can tell, it has been deliberately designed to look like something from maybe 60 years ago, even though Caterham itself was founded in 1973. To understand why this is, you have to look back to the Lotus 7, designed by Colin Chapman.
So, take a closer look at the Sprint and you’ll see the wheels are painted cream and are finished with polished metal hubcaps. At both front and rear (you can only see the front in this shot, unfortunately), the lights resemble those found on the original 1957 Lotus 7. Likewise the steering wheel and dashboard are finished in wood, and the seats are hand-stitched leather.
“We have always prided ourselves on continually developing the Seven during the 44 years we have been custodian of the model. But we never wished to dismiss our heritage either,” said Caterham Cars CEO, Graham Macdonald. “It’s a car that has been built today, with all the benefits that modern engineering brings with it, but the essence of the swinging ‘60s and is the perfect precursor to our 60th-anniversary celebration in 2017.”
Caterham Cars had been a major dealer of the Lotus 7 and when Lotus announced it was discontinuing the design, it stepped in to purchase the rights to manufacture the model itself. In this way, the spirit of the original Chapman design continues to drive on…
Available to order now, with deliveries due to start in 2017, the Caterham Seven Sprint will cost from £27,995 ($37,000) and only 60 examples will be built for the European market.
Numbers for Asia and the US, territories where the company is building up a cult following, are yet to be confirmed.
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